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Inadvertently, Martha has become my girl this week as I’ve been floundering around trying to figure out what to do with my seasonal produce that a) I haven’t done before and b) doesn’t require any great amount of fussing. Or work. Or adherence to recipes. (Okay, that last part may be more of a Deb than a Martha thing, but you won’t tell her, right?) The arugula, potato and green bean salad was good and well enough for a Wednesday night, but did little to help me turn last week’s languishing South Jersey peaches into something better. (Who forgets they have almost two pounds of farm fresh peaches in their fridge? Guilty as charged.)

I’ve already cobbler-ed, baited, dumpling-ed and shortcaked this summer, with a little extra hand pie thrown in on July 4th, and I wanted something new when Martha swept in, saving the day, with a pie that looked so ridiculously simple but curiously original, it had to be mine. Er, ours.

There are only four things going on here: a single pie crust, some streusel, hunks of quartered peaches and crème fraîche but when they’re baked together, the crust becomes a shell that decks your plate with pastry flecks and flakes and the filling bakes itself into something more like a tangy custard and less like a traditionally sweet slumpy pie. This is a peach pie for grownups, almost excessively so: I always wish desserts were a little less sweet and still felt this pie would benefit from additional sugar (I present that option below).

But mostly, we just loved this. It comes together so quickly and has a richness that most baked fruit desserts lack — it must be all that double cream — and if you already have a pie crust on hand, you won’t believe how fast you can churn this out. Or how fast it might disappear.

Prepare pie dough: Roll out pie dough (look!: a tutorial) to about 1/8-inch thick and fit into a regular (not deep dish) pie plate, 9 1/2 to 10 inches in diameter. Trim edge to 1/2 inch; fold under and crimp as desired. Pierce bottom of dough all over with a fork. Transfer to freezer for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400°F right before you take it out.

Make streusel: Stir confectioners’ sugar, baking powder, salt and three tablespoons flour together in a small bowl. Add bits of cold butter, and either using a fork, pastry blender or your fingertips, work them into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add additional flour as needed; I needed to almost double it to get the mixture crumbly, but my kitchen is excessively warm and the butter wanted to melt. Set aside.

Par-bake crust: Tightly press a piece of aluminum foil against frozen pie crust. From here, you ought to fill the shell with pie weights or dried beans, or you can wing it like certainly lazy people we know, hoping the foil will be enough to keep the crust shape in place. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove carefully remove foil and any weights you have used, press any bubbled-up spots in with the back of a spoon, and return the crust to the oven for another 5 to 8 minutes, or until it is lightly golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F.

[P.S. If you’re not overly-concerned about “soggy bottoms” (in the words of Julia Child) you can save time by skipping the par-baking step. Given the light nature of the filling, odds are good that it would not become excessively damp even without the parbake.]

Make the filling: Sprinkle quartered peaches with sugar (two tablespoons will make a just-barely-sweeteened pie; add the other two for a still not overly-sweet but sweeter pie) and salt. Let sit for 10 minutes. Spread two tablespoons crème fraîche in bottom of par-baked pie shell, sprinkle with one-third of the streusel and fan the peach quarters decoratively on top. Dot the remaining three tablespoons of crème fraîche on the peaches and sprinkle with remaining streusel.

Bake the pie: Until the crème fraîche is bubble and the streusel is golden brown, about 50 minutes. Cover edge of crust with a strip of foil if it browns too quickly. Let cool on a wire rack at least 15 minutes before serving.

I stored this in the fridge, due to the crème fraîche, and found that I liked it even better cold, with the flavors better married.

* Make your own crème fraîche: It’s true! You can make a version of it at home, using these instructions.

232 comments on peach and crème fraîche pie

Oh Deb, you had me at ‘tangy custard’. I’ve just made a batch of crème fraîche for a smoked salmon pasta and now I know what to do with what we have left over. Thanks for a great idea, I’m always looking for something new to do with peaches.

WOW! That looks delicious. It will be mine next weekend. You’re always right on the money. We’re in Jersey and this week the kids and I are going peach picking. In fact, we might make a few of these seeing as we’ll be swimming in peaches– the neighbors will be lucky!

Wow, this really looks fantastic!. I don’t use creme fraiche a lot, but always have good intentions toward it. With peaches in abundance and a freezer full of frozen pie crusts, your note that this comes together fast may make this my weekend project :-)

question: whenever I’ve baked peaches, they’ve ended up tasting like canned peaches to me, instead of a version of the luscious dripping fruit it was before baking.
(haven’t tried roasting yet due to the above experience)

And canned peaches are, well…..canned peaches. Good not to waste if one has too many peaches. But I haven’t liked them since I was a child.

Am I doing something wrong here? Or is it just a matter of different taste buds (I read folks going on about yummy peach this or that….yet when I try, canned peach taste)

Haha I am more guilty than you on the letting-your-produce-go front. The latest I’ve blogged about this is a melon sorbet, because apparently leaving a melon in the middle of your counter is not reminder enough to eat it. This pie looks delish–my only attempt at a peach pie was once with dried peaches last winter, and I must say I was pretty meh about it. But using a delectably juicy, fresh specimen? How can you go wrong?

Deb, I didn’t see any references to peeling the peaches–did you do that? or (be still my heart) is this a recipe where I don’t have to dip the fruit into boiling water and do all that extra stuff in order to peel the fruit? *slurp* It looks FANTASTIC. Thanks.

My grandmother used to make something similar, but with sour cream. She used 1 C. sour cream (not low fat), a couple table spoons of flour and 1/2 to 1 C. of sugar, depending on sweetness of the peaches. It was/is amazing.

I often find myself craving pie. It’s one of my all time favorite desserts, in any incarnation. For some reason, it’s hard to find a slice of good pie in NYC establishments (or I don’t know where to look). Maybe not enough country folk ’round here? This looks incredible and may send me down the “if you want something done right, make it yourself” route.

do you make your own creme fraiche?
my fridge is on the fritz – not keeping things cold enough – and i was surprised how fast the milk soured. it has me thinking i’m not too keen on leaving dairy out, at room temp, to make creme fraiche.
maybe i should bite the bullet and try it.

I have a version of this pie..similar to KateinIowa’s (#37) Grandmother’s recipe but mine also includes a couple of egg yolks. It works best with firm ripe peaches. It’s outstanding! I imagine yours works just as well without the extra ingredients. I’m also glad to see there is no cinnamon in your recipe. Peaches just don’t need it as their own flavor is enough. In fact, most summer fruits and berries don’t need cinnamon..yet so many recipes call for it. I wonder why? Doesn’t appear that you peeled your peaches. Did you?

Oooh I’ve got to say that if I have fresh peaches on hand…I just eat them. Very, very fast. Or chuck them into fruit salad. Or ice cream.But mostly I just eat them as they are. They don’t last a day in my hands.

Stop it right now. This looks so delicious. Chalk another one up for Martha, much as I hate to admit it. In grade school, I used to lock myself up in the bathroom and read Martha Stewart’s “Entertaining” from cover to cover. I just can’t escape her.

Amazing! How do you always make me want to run (not walk) directly to my kitchen? Well, in this case, to the farmer’s market for the best fruit then the kitchen. I’ve never tried creme fraiche before but I already know I’ll love it (creamy and tangy…what’s not to love?).

I just went yesterday to our (really large) farmer’s market in Asheville where the South Carolina peaches are rolling in by the truckload. You have to buy practically a bushel at a time so I need LOTS of recipes! Or at least lots of canning jars!

I’m also wondering about the non-peeling of the peaches. I’m from Georgia, land of many many peaches, but have never gotten on board with the idea of eating peaches with the skin on — just seems too fuzzy. However, I’m curious about what becomes of the peach fuzz when it’s cooked in a pie. Does it become something different altogether?

Last week I made two peach pies. Why? Because the first crust turned out horrible. I ate the filling from around the crust. When I decided to remake the pie, I used your AMAZING All Butter Really Flaky Pie crust. It was phenomenal. Totally saved my reputation. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

And when I don’t feel like boiling water to peel peaches, I use my serrated vegetable peeler. Works wonders, but I still prefer to peel them the same way you make tomatoes concasse. Cutting the X on the bottom of the peaches makes it so easy.

This looks fabulous! I’m curious as other poster though, do you think it would work with other fruit? Specifically right now I have a counter full of fresh apricots. Peaches won’t be in season here (Toronto) for a few more weeks.

I absolutely love your blog and *all* your recipes, your precision and this wonderful pie :-) I’ll put immediately your link on my foodblog.
Forgive my english, I’m writing from Rome, Italy, I read english language very well but I’m not very good in writing.
I’ll come back here very often!

This looks like the perfect peach pie. When I was a kid, my grandmother always served peaches cut up with sugar and cream on them. I serve the peaches with sour cream mixed in instead of fresh cream. It’s a very lovely combination. I’m going to have to try this pie.

i have had that martha recipe bookmarked to make since i first saw it but was always a little wary of it – but since it got your endorsement – i am making it! peach pie is one of my favs in the summer.

Looks delicious…this reminds me of a phase I went through last summer of making baked tarts with a layer of nut cream under the fruit. I just processed together my nut of choice, some sugar and creme fraiche, smeared it over a tart shell, laid the fruit on top and baked. Delicious. Plums were what I seemed to use most often, but I imagine the peaches would be wonderful with some pecan cream…

I saw this yesterday morning, made it in the afternoon and ate 2 pieces last night.
And one for breakfast this morning. Oh my gosh it’s good!!
I made the creme fraiche from the link you gave since I couldn’t find any at the grocery store. Hmm, maybe I need to make another pie to use up the rest of it…

Made this yesterday for company – rave reviews all around! I’m usually not a fan of cooked peaches, but this was perfect and I can’t wait to make it again! I’m so happy my sister directed me to your website Deb. I’ve made several of your wonderful offerings and have never been disappointed!

martha stewart, eh? this looks delicious, and if you say it is, then i’ll believe it. i never have ANY luck with martha stewart recipes…but as all i need to create this pie is a few peaches, i’m going to give it a go..and take the advice on additional sugar. sweetness is my weakness – and that is a good thing.

I’ll let you know how it goes with nectarines instead, they looked much better than the peaches at the farmer’s market. Speaking of non-fussy recipes that include my favorite ingredient creme fraiche, have you tried Nigella’s Blackberry Galette? It’s like a polenta crust fruit pizza of amazing-ness. I’ve also done that recipe with mascarpone in place of the creme fraiche. I wonder if that would work for this recipe as well?

I can’t believe you put peaches in the fridge! I always though that would ruin the texture, like with tomatoes. Am I wrong?

Being from the Peach State, I feel I have a little knowledge on the lovely fruit. Besides my grandma’s peach cobbler, one of the best and easiest ways to use of peaches is this – peel and halve them, top with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of brown sugar. Then just broil until lightly brown and bubbly. Divine!

I made this one a few years ago. The crust was amazing, but I agree that the filling could have used some more sweetness. I wondered at the time if I’d gotten some wonky peaches, but perhaps it just needed more sugar. If you have time, I highly recommend making the pate sucree crust that goes with this; for me, it was the star of the pie.

oh wow… that looks creamy and warm and peachy and super yummy.
I love peaches, If anyone ever made this at home, I’d probably eat all of the peach slices before it goes to the oven haha….but too bad peaches are one of the more expensive imported fruits here, so alternatives would probably be mangoes ? ;)

Pardon if this sounds strange, but I wanted to lick my computer screen when I saw the first picture!

Do you think this recipe would work with Manila mangoes in place of peaches? Peaches are one of my favorite fruits, but my parents really, really enjoy mangoes. I was considering baking mango hand pies for an upcoming get-together, but this pie begs to be made stat.

THIS PIE IS DONKEY KONG. I made it to bring to a friend’s house and the plans fell through so this is all ours. We used some delicious white peaches and I added vanilla to the filling. Delicious. I will make this again, and again and again.

Dear Smitten Kitten
Adore your blog…often I want to try recipes and even in season, ingredients are cost prohibitive. This is such a beautiful recipe, for its simplicity and pureness…maybe I love it also because it feels ‘peasant.’ All that aside, I have a large bag of organic dried peaches received as a gift. I’m wondering if reconstituting the peaches might be an alternative for the pie recipe. Your recipe for making creme fraiche is so welcome and appreciated.

While my substitutions may not meet the culinary standards of some cooks, I would rather try than sit here drooling in envy:-)

p.s. Zuchinni pasta is fabo delicious affordable; I used Barilla’s mini penne. In hindsight while the ingredient list was perfection I would dice rather than matchstick the zuchinni next time, unless using spaghetti…

This was amazing. I have a full-fledge fear of pie crusts but I actually sat down and read your tutorials and made a pie crust – with my 4yo daughter at my side. It worked! I really can bake nearly anything but pie crust had a hold on me. Great tutorials.

You are right, this is an adult dessert. Neither kids wanted any part of it or any other kids at the BBQ. But, adults loved it and it was gone before I could blink.

You are right about more sugar. Our peaches were sweet enough but the tad bit of extra sugar helped.

I’ve read your blog for years now. I wish you and your husband all the best with your new baby.

i have yet to try this. i haven’t really tried creme fraiche ever, i dont know why, but i bet i’m really missing out. i too have forgotten that i have a big stash of peaches on the dining table that our neighbor gave to us. i was supposed to make muffins for them, but i guess this is a better idea. thanks! oh, and clarissa, mangoes on this?! oh my, i would go and try that too. or maybe even mix them! i am sooo excited. yeeee! i am so giddy inside!

There is a kind of whole-milk yogurt I sometimes use that has a layer of ‘cream’ on the top… is this like creme fraiche? Or could I use it to mix with whipping cream? It’s very similar to sour cream in taste and texture.

Delicious! Tried this last night but with honey greek-style yogurt subbing for the cream fraiche and was too lazy to make a crust so it was baked and served like a crisp. Of course I also had cherries, blueberries, and plums in the mix, too, sweetened with a tablespoon of lavender syrup–I can never leave anything alone! I wondered if the cream fraiche did the same thing the yogurt did: cooked up sort of firm, almost like a cheesecake texture? And thank you also for the streusel recipe–I’ve never seen one before with powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar…It’s much more like some of the bakery-made streusels I’ve had.

Creme fraiche is always expensive around here and I like the following, cheaper alternative. We baked the pie for my housemate’s goodbye party last night but made our own creme fraiche out of plain whole milk yogurt. We strained the yogurt overnight in a cheesecloth in the fridge. It was a good texture and creamy, but it didn’t bubble in the oven as the recipe suggests. However, it was amazing and delicious just the same.

I have been making a “peaches and cream” pie from a very old Betty Crocker cookbook since I was a kid–it’s been a family favorite for years! This looks like an even creamier version, and I can’t wait until I can get the best peaches we can get here in Minnesota–the free-stone Elberta peaches from Colorado. None of those hard California peaches for me–they never ripen evenly or slice off the stone well enough to make a decent pie or tart. I am jealous of you Easterners getting local peaches!

So…..I tried this recipe at work, and added marionberries which are just coming into season in Oregon, and mine did not look like that. Too juicy. Maybe because I blanched and peeled them first? The berries? Super delicious though, but glad I parbaked….or soggy bottoms. Anyway, it was majorly delicious. Thanks for so many great recipes, and it’s so nice to finally find someone else out there who bridles at the word “veggies”. Ick.

Just made this, and it was FABULOUS. Took it to a party, and some people asked if it was a cobbler…. I have no idea, but I have some more peaches and some leftover pastry and am going to make it again.

By the way, I don’t know if anyone ever has trouble with this, but I was very worried that the peaches I had purchased would not be ripe enough, so I put them in a basket (didn’t have a paper bag) with a couple of ripe bananas, for about 36 hours. This worked a treat. Only one was still too greenish. The rest were perfect.

Deb – I made this last night and it turned out fabulous! I added a small amount of cardamom to the peaches along with the sugar while the pie crust pre-baked. It was so nice! My 18-year-old loved it too! The streusel topping is very similar to one my German grandmother would make for her famous cherry coffeecake. My crust turned out flaky and perfect. Thanks for so many great tips. I love your site!

deb, could i sub sour cream for creme fraiche – am actually re-making your coffee crumble cake (with rhubarb) – that’s become my all time fave cake recipe – and am going to have sour cream left over – and so want to try this pie but not upto getting creme fraiche as well – so wanted to check
btw, best wishes for the baby!

Made the cf peach pie last night and it is wonderful. I was wondering, because I have boat load of peaches, if I could freeze this pie.
Love your sight but how do you cook in such a small area? I seem to dirty everything and run out of cabinet space.
Thanks

Well I’m in Alaska and without driving all the way into Anchorage I cannot get creme fraiche and of course I didn’t plan well enough to make it myself. I was however able to find Mascarpone cheese so I’m going to doctor it up with a bit of sour cream for the tang and a touch of vanilla and substitute it for the creme fraiche. I’ll let you know how it comes out.

I am in Beijing for the summer, and it is really hard finding a lot of dairy here. I read somewhere that you can use sour cream as a substitute. What about yogurt, or is that too liquidy? I think I’ve only seen sour cream once here and it was quite expensive, but yogurt is everywhere.

I made this with strained plain yogurt instead of the cream, and it worked really well. I strained the yogurt for 24 hours in a sieve lined with paper towels and then used the thick paste as a direct substitution.

I just made this pie for the second time! This one is being sent with the husband into work tomorrow. I hope it will compensate a little bit for having to work the weekend!
I made this in a 8×8 cake pan because I don’t have a pie tin and it worked fine. Yay!

Hey Deb! I didn’t have 1 1/2 lbs of peaches, and I couldn’t bare to leave them out, so I added some pitted and halved Rainier cherries to make up for it…yum! With your recent cherry facination, I knew you would appreciate :-)

Also, I noticed that you left the skin on the peaches. Do you find the skin noticeable when eating it? I hate peeling, but hate peach skin more. Next time I may leave it on if it didn’t bother anyone.

I made the pie with the mascarpone cheese and it came out wonderful. Unfortunately there was A LOT of oil released from the cheese and it got everywhere in the oven and smoked up the whole house. Plus I drained about 2 tablespoons of oil off the pie itself when I took it out of the oven. The peaches I had weren’t wonderful or flavorful and actually kind of mealy but I added some lemon juice and some zest when I sugared them and once everything had baked and cooled overnight in the fridge it was an outstanding result. I left the skins on the peaches and they cooked down during the baking process and were hardly noticeable. Thanks for a great recipe that adapted well to changes.

Just made the pie today. SIGH. I wasn’t thrilled with the result. I followed the recipe exactly as indicated above, using the 2T of sugar for the already very sweet, delicious peaches.

Our problem? The butter from the crust, and I suppose some of the creme fraiche. We just felt like we had a bit of an oil slick seething from the pie. We are most certainly pie people, and NOT opposed to butter in the least. It was just that there were little puddles of it all over the top of the pie, on our plates, and on my hands when transferring slices.

I couldn’t even get down to the overall flavor – I was washing my hands, wiping my mouth, etc, etc.

Anyone else have this problem? Wondering if it was just ME! All the other reviews are glowing.

I made this on Friday and … oh yeah! The pie crust was a cinch to make, the filling and streusel could not be any easier, and OHHH is it good after sitting a day or two in the fridge! Another fantastic recipe – thanks, Deb!

I’ve made a few of the recipes you featured, but this is my first comment. I made this pie with your crust tonight and for friends…dyn-o-mite! I threw in some blueberries and raspberries and I have never been happier. Thanks.

I made this pie tonight, so here are a few things I noticed: I needed about 10 tablespoons of flour to make my streusel crumbly. I used nectarines instead of peaches, and I only used four. It was a bit on the skimpy side, so I’d suggest used five.
I just tried a piece and the pie is good. I’m looking forward to trying it tomorrow, cold.

Thanks Deb, I bought some peaches at the Farmer’s Market this weekend and made the pie the same night. I actually just finished up having two slices for lunch. Awesome. I was out of creme fraiche so I used Crema Rancherito, a thick Mexican sour cream. Worked like a charm.

I made this this morning, and while my crust was not as lovely as yours, the pie was fantastic! In fact, some coworkers caught wind of my toilings and when I arrived at work today, asked where their slices were. I suppose I’ll have to make another one very soon.
Thank you so for sharing this.

I’ve made this twice and it is a great pie! I found that the first time some of my crumble fell apart into puddles of melted butter and made the inside pretty soupy, even after using 6 Tbsp of flour. It was still delicious, but a little too soupy. I probably could have baked it a little longer too. The second time, I added extra powdered sugar and probably used about 8 Tbsp of flour for the crumble and it turned out great.

for those worried about peeling peaches, i would. eating the skin was unpleasant and i had to use a knife (never had to do that while eating a pie before). someone mentioned needing lots of flour for the streusel; totally needed about 10 tbsp. and the pie could have been sweeter. i used 4 tbsp sugar and it could haven used more (and my peaches were the run-down-your-face sweet ones picked from the tree at the farm).

i have to say, i love most stuff i’ve made here, but this was a bust for me :(

This is my first time commenting on this website. I made this pie and your crust. I thought the crust was going to turn out perfectly and I was doing everything correctly. The best word to describe my crust is tough. Maybe I didn’t blend the butter long enough into small enough pieces? This is my first attempt at pie and pie crust and would love to know what to do different in the future.
Also, the filling of the pie is not homogenized like your picture, and is a little thin. I did just get it out of the oven 30 minutes ago, so maybe more cooling/refrigeration will solve that problem.
Otherwise, the flavors taste great and I’m happy with the result. Thanks!!

THIS IS SOOO GOOD! I’m in love with it and it really is SO simple! Thank you!
(PS: Your webside is the best.. I can never decide what I want to try out next ;D)

Though I have a question: I had some problems with the crust.. it basically floated in the butter. Was it right to bake it with the aluminum foil? Wouldn’t have it been better to use baking paper instead? When I took away the foil the crust was still without colour and the dough rose up. The crust was also kind of tough. I never had problems with it before so I was pretty surprised it didn’t turn out the way I wanted it. Thanks!

My baby turned 18 today and is off to see the world on her birthday – so lamenting around the kitchen by my lonesome this morning I decided to make this lovely pie. Sorry for the laziness, but I used an organic frozen pie crust – I know, but again I was being lazy. My streusel turned out beautifully – although with the kitchen being warm I let it rest in the frig while prepping the rest of the pie and tossed it again before adding. I jam packed the pie with extra peach slices and extra creme fraiche. It turned out beautifully. My husband had to have his with organic vanilla ice cream (wasn’t sweet enough for him) but I’m addicted to the tanginess and freshness of the peaches (I did peel mine as well) and the crumble of the topping. I’m almost ashamed to admit how much of it I’ve eaten already. Thanks Deb for a lovely dessert that I will make again and for the temporary distraction while I’m missing my youngest!

A friend and I made this with apricots last night and DEAR GOD ITS GOOD! Agree with the others who think it needs more sugar — next time I’d make it with 6-8 Tbs of Sugar. I also think next time I make it I might add a smidge of almond extract to the filling. But seriously — insanely good.

Yep, I did the ‘make-creme-fraiche-yourself’ thing, and my wife gave me the strangest looks as the room-temp cream camped on the counter for 24 full hours. She even threatened to not eat anything made with the stuff, ‘on principle’. But when we tried a slice (properly accompanied with good vanilla ice cream, naturally), she was stunned! Thanks for yet another excuse to be in the kitchen and to make something lovely & unexpected for my Love.

I made this pie and let me just say, it tasted exactly like I hoped it would. Tangy, juicy, not too sweet. My peaches turned purple around the edges, which was cool. Even so, my pie wasn’t quite as pretty as your photos, but oh my gosh, was it good.

I made the “homemade creme fraiche” – the sour cream one – and it worked beautifully. I was much too lazy to parbake the crust, but you would never have known. I could probably lift the whole pie out of the pie dish in one piece! (Maybe this was because my peaches weren’t super-juicy.)

Speaking of the crust, the all-butter flaky crust recipe you recommend is perfect. Thank you for sharing this interesting version of peach pie!

I’m making this right now and am tempted to draw on inspiration from your peach and bourbon hand-pies and add a tsp of bourbon to the peach mix. Do you think it would make it too liquid to get the setting effect from the creme fraiche?

Made this yesterday and had people over for dinner. It was absolutely incredible, even just served at room temperature. I used a different recipe for the pie crust and made my own creme fraiche, but otherwise no changes. Seriously delicious!

I made this yesterday and, like all the recipes I’ve tried from your site, it came out fantastic! I made my own creme fraiche a few days earlier using the sour cream + whipping cream combo… I am boggled at how mixing those two things together makes creme fraiche, but it worked like a charm. I added a little bit of cinnamon and nutmeg to the streusel topping and upped the sugar in the filling to 5 -6 TBSP b/c my hubby likes things on the sweeter side. I’m storing this in the fridge, but think I like the flavor better warm or at room temp.

Found some peach victims in the basement and decided that I had to use the remaining survivors quickly and I thought this recipe was fantastic for them. With a dollop of slightly sweet fresh whippped cream and very well chilled, it makes for a great encore after a warm summer supper!

This is worth bookmarking. I normally am not a fan of fruit pies because of the textural mush factor – but this bypasses that issue by calling for the peaches only to be quartered. I added lemon zest to the filling and it contributed a bit of brightness and tartness to the tangy and sweet. Very nice. Especially cold and leftover. Thanks Deb.

This might be the best pie I’ve ever made. This comes out much less runny/mushy than you’d expect – not at all, actually. It holds together unlike any other fruit pie I’ve made. And it tastes lovely. Make it right now!

I made this because I had a lot of peaches to use up, and saw this recipe the same day I need a gift that said “thanks for letting me crash at your beach condo!” The hosts have lots of guests (who doesn’t want to stay at a beach condo?) so I thought they’d like having some extra pie in the fridge for all the company they have over.

I made it without tasting it first, but I wasn’t nervous because it was a beautiful looking pie. (Certainly one of the prettiest I’ve ever made.) It turns out that it tasted even better than it looked. My hosts RAVED about this pie, and I’ve gotten a bunch of requests for the recipe.

Oh – I made it using a frozen pie shell from Whole Foods. I didn’t parbake it; instead, I just let it sit on the counter while I prepared the peaches and other ingredients. (I cheat, therefore I am.)

Hello there! Went peach picking with the kids and had to find ways to use up the 20lbs of peaches we bought. I have “lurked” around your sight for over two years. Everything you make looks sooo good. This weekend was the first time I made something. I tried the peach cupcakes-they were f-a-b-u-l-o-u-s. Then this pie. Yum. I just finished 2 (small) slices. Trust me they would have been bigger but I have to save some for the rest of the family. Congrats on your soon-to-be new addition!

I made a test version of this and it turned out so so. Mostly I think because my peaches were not quite ripe enough and it was my first time making a pie crust. It didn’t taste awful, but there wasn’t any stand out flavour.

Trying again for a cottage trip this weekend and I think it will be much better! Crust looks like it has bigger butter chunks, my peaches are ripe and I got a tangier creme fraiche. Also going to dr the streudel with a bit of cinnamon. :)

I made this some time ago. I think it could use a bit of cinnamon mixed in with the peaches. Here in Hungary it so common to use ground cinnamon in most every kind of fruit pie.
I made the mistake of using too little salt in the dough. But aside from this it turned out very well. Thanks for sharing this recipe.

Awesome! I made this as a tart with the unshrinkable tart shell. I added some ground almonds to the dough for the shell. I used whole wheat flour for the streudel (out of plain), and the whole thing tasted so amazing that I was sad when it was gone. Luckily our local farmer’s market has a fabulous peach vendor. This is a recipe I’ll end up memorizing. Thanks so much for posting it!

Oh my goodness, this pie is fantastic! Thought it was much better cold the next day, but not only does it taste great, it looks so pretty too with the cooked peaches and crumble topping! Definitely going to make this again. Your pie crust walk-through was so helpful as well–now I have a go-to recipe for pie crusts!

I am currently baking this pie in my oven as we speak. Overcome with excellent peaches I surprised myself last night by making the pie crust as per your instructions, and whipped up the rest tonight. Since I’m a bit disorganized this took a while. I’ll post taste notes later this evening. :)

For folks whose pies came out swimming in butter – this happened to me the first time I made the pie; after the second time, I realized I hadn’t pre-baked the crust enough the first time. The butter from the under-baked crust added to the liquids in the recipe, and it swam. Fortunately, the second time was the charm, and I absolutely love the tangy creme fraiche with the peaches.

I really wanted to make this pie. It was so fantastic looking in the picture, but it just was a total failure for me. However, what I had tasted really good, so when it’s peach season again I’m going to try this out, but maybe forget about trying to make the crumbly top. Also, I would use a less flaky crust.

Just made this last night as a kind of slab pie, with nectarines and sour cream (you do with what you got!) It was so good-Still getting over my pie crust phobia from my disasters in “Discovering Foods” class in seventh grade.

I am going to make this but will sprinkle crushed gigngersnaps on the botttom of crust (to help with preventing sogginess) and perhaps add some to the streusel as well. I am also going to use 1/2 white & 1/2 brown sugar instead of all white. Will let you know how it turns out!

I made this tonight and wish a cup amount for the peaches was listed. I used 5 peaches and they didn’t quite fill my pie pan. I did cut them thinner than quarters. I’m looking forward to trying it tomorrow after it sits in the fridge over night. A nice, cold piece for breakfast sounds great! Next time I’ll buy more peaches and will probably use some brown sugar for the streusel.

I made this sans crust in a buttered baking dish, and it was pretty remarkable – more of a cobble, I guess. I didn’t even want ice cream on top; that’s how good it was. The slightly burned edges were the best – chewy and caramelized and delicious. Will definitely make this again, and try it as a pie as well.

I like it leftover and cold as well – the filling sets until its almost custard-like. Sometimes I serve it with honey-sweetened whipped cream. I have a version in the oven right now with vanilla bean, lemon and lavender. And a top crust. There’s no such thing as too much butter crust.

I just took this out of the oven! I have a peach tree in the back, so I’ve made peach jam, peach butter, pickled peaches, your peach shortbread, this pie, and canned an extra two quarts for use this winter. The big pie is going to work with me tomorrow, but I made a couple mini ones with the crust scraps (couldn’t let the extra creme fraiche I made go to waste). In the smaller ones, I put a peach slice or two and filled the rest in with raspberries. A-mazing!

I did this (yes, in mid-February – I needed a little taste of summertime) using perfect peaches from last summer that I had in my freezer. My pie didn’t look anything like the pictures; it turned out more like a cobbler but it still tasted really *really* good. It was all my fault – I parbaked the crust but was in a rush so I didn’t let it cool and just threw the fillings all into the hot crust. I also threw in a Tblsp of Bourbon into the peaches, which were pretty juicy after thawing most of the way. The guts splooged outside of the crust (tho luckily, not outside of the pie plate) and 50 mins later I had a wonderful delicious mess o’ peaches and creme.

I just made this and I’m very sad to say that this is the first time a Deb recipe has failed me. Read and re-read the directions multiple times, followed every direction to a T including the inclusion of extra flour, and the result was a disaster: it was nothing short of a peach/butter soup contained within a pie crust. It was tasty when you slurped it together, but unservable to guests. I suspect I needed to add MUCH more flour to the streusel. Any other suggestions?

This recipe failed me. Someone else had mentioned used sour cream as a substitute and I tried it with Greek yogurt but my filling was swimming in liquid and did not hold together at all. There was at least a cup of liquid mixed in with the peaches, making for a very soggy crust. I’m not sure if using creme fraiche would have solved my problems. I parbaked the crust for the stated amount of time. Any suggestions? Too much juice from the peaches?

I messed up but still yum! I used yellow peach and a handful of unloved blackberries I froze weeks ago. I also substituted strained yogurt for the creme cuz that’s what I have.

Cuz I don’t want to exclude the peach juice from the frozen peaches and might have left it baking for too long. It turned out to be a peach pie with strousel on top with completely wilted peach inside that taste like dried apricot…hmm…it might also have to do with the fact I put it in the oven and forgot to turn it on…until 50min later.

@stella – I have a friend who works as a pastry chef for a small restaurant and adapted this with strawberries and rhubarb. The customers loved it! I’m sorry I don’t have any advice on how to deal with the extra wetness involved (I forgot to ask her), but the flavor combo totally sounds worth experimenting with!

LOVE this pie so much (made it last week to rave reviews) that my friends and I are winging it in Nantucket during Hurricane Irene. Alas, we have neither pie plate nor rolling pin, but we’re punting… Thanks for the recipe!

We always have a peach pie for my dad’s birthday, but it’s usually store-bought since my mom is not too adventurous in the kitchen. But this year I sent her this recipe and it turned out great! SO. GOOD. Said my dad, “this is how a peach pie is supposed to taste!”

I just made this pie this afternoon (and following your pie crust 102 recipe!) It was my first pie making attempt and it was a SUCCESS!!! The pie is absolutely delicious!!! One question though – instead of using creme fraiche I used greek yogurt (i couldn’t find creme fraiche in the local grocery store). I think the yogurt may have curdled a little bit. Do you have any suggestions? Would this be a problem if I used creme fraiche instead? Thanks!!!

hi! has anyone tried this without par-baking the crust? i want to make it for a fourth of july party tomorrow, but also don’t want to suffer too much from having the oven on in my nyc kitchen – it’s 95 degrees! i have had success with the pie crust 102 recipe and wonder if i could just use it without par-baking.

Late entry, but wanted to say it came out fabulously. I picked this because it was easy, and I didn’t have to skin peaches (okay, I wouldn’t have bothered skinning the peaches for any recipe). I did par-bake the crust (which was a butter-based gluten-free one from Whole Foods and surprisingly excellent and flaky), and subbed the gluten-free “all-purpose flour” for the regular flour. Maybe for those of you whose pies are coming out soupy, toss the peaches in some cornstarch as well as some sugar? Maybe all these starch-based products I used prevented everything from staying watery. I also threw the streusel mix back in the refrigerator to resolidify so it was solid when it went in the pie. There was a little liquid pooling in the bottom of the pie plate after I cut it, but that’s normal for any fruit pie that hasn’t had a lot of thickeners added.

I made this pie again tonight, after making at least 6 times last peach season because it was so delicious. And it IS delicious — it’s one of my favorite peach pies, ever. But tonight? Tonight I decided swapping honey greek yogurt was reasonable since I didn’t have any creme fraiche or sour cream.

Word of warning, friends — do NOT sub greek yogurt for the creme fraiche! It cooks through, and you’re stuck with gross cheese-like clumps in your delicious, beautiful pie. If you can’t find creme fraiche, go with sour cream! Even cream cheese would be better.

Luckily, I had pretty big glops, so it was easy to dig out and save the pie. But.. blech. No good!

Just picked peaches from the neighbors tree, made creme fraiche last night and dough this morning….I am so excited to put it all together! But first I must go for a long hike in the mountains so I can eat 1 or 2 maybe 3 pieces tonight :)

First I just want to say THANK YOU for this recipe, and for all that you do for us! My boyfriend absolutely LOVES everything I make from your site. Our relationship would not be what it is without you! I really want to make this pie for him again, because he still talks about the time I made it in August…the only problem is it’s for his birthday, which is this month! Do you think I can use frozen peaches? Canned? Any suggestions??

First, love your blog! Everything you put out is wonderful. I came across this recipe years ago, while visiting a friend in Connecticut. The first time I made it was with lobster rolls and local peaches, and I’ve made it every summer since! Thanks for the post!

Tried this recipe today. Somehow I missed that to make the creme fraiche myself, I would have to leave it aside for 24 hours… I still went ahead and made it. I whipped the whipped cream and sour cream in my KitchenAid until it was thick and set aside for an hour or so. I worked marvelously! The pie was a hit among our friends, the sweetness was just right.

This was REALLY easy and really nice (it was pie for breakfast day today!). Made it with fresh local peaches and added about 3tbsp of sugar to the filling – still found it to be not too sweet at all which was good because the peaches were quite sweet (again, pie for breakfast material). Next time I would just add some vanilla bean or another complementary spice, like cardamom, to the filling. I also used a deep-dish pie crust and it worked fine.

Who doesn’t love peaches and cream? This was definitely a 5 out of 5. I agree with using 4 tablespoons of sugar for the filling. It was not too sweet, just right. I made my own creme fraiche with your link using whipping cream and sour cream and it worked out great. I had the same experience as a recent poster that the creme fraiche set up in only an hour when using whipping cream and sour cream. So easy. I even mixed in some nectarines I had. Oh and I used a boring old Pillsbury pie crust par baked. Definitely will make this again!

Do you think I could use the peaches and crème fraiche in your nectarine galette recipe? My pie crust in a traditional pie pan never works (shrinks down, burns, etc) and have come to embrace the rustic nature of the galette.

Hi Deb,
I made this with pears, as there were no peaches at the supermarket when I went to get the above ingredients, and I felt compelled to improvise. It was risky, but WELL worth it- the pear pie was spectacular! I just used two T. of sugar on 5 Bartlett pears, cut into big chunks. It worked very well. Thank you for the recipe!

w/ the peaches and creme fraiche – i was excited about this recipe. as a newbie cook/baker, i do not yet know when to modify recipes. i needed a lot more topping per the # peaches used (and i leaned twds 4, vs 5, peaches). hrmm

If you’re scrolling down to look and see if the step where you peel the peaches is missing, I had the same thought, but honestly the peach skins add a delightful texture to the pie, and I wouldn’t consider making the pie without them in the future. This pie is amazing.

Made this last night, and despite all attempts to ruin it, it turned out amazing!

Made the butter crust ( like i have many times) and despite upping the butter content ( which again i always do, it was dry and wouldn’t come together. I suspect I wasn’t paying attention and actually put an extra half cup of flour in. managed to piece together a bottom crust but was sure it was going to turn out tough from overworking it ( it wasn’t.. it was still flaky and wonderful)

in my distress from the crust disaster i totally forgot to even put foil on the crust when parbaking. but – it didn’t shrink at all! phew.

I also found i needed the full amount of flour listed above to get the streusel to come together nicely. couldn’t help adding some brown sugar too.

i loved the creme fraiche on the bottom. it sort of melted into the crust and made it super rich and crispy. almost shortbread like.

I was surprised, however, that the creme fraiche dotted on top didn’t melt much. it stayed in little chunks. still tasted fantastic but it looked a little odd (like cheese curds!) on the plate. not sure if my creme fraiche was just thicker than yours or it is supposed to stay whole like that.

also was pleasantly surprised that this was NOT overly wet. I think the lack of a top crust allowed a lot of the moisture to evaporate and left for a perfectly beautiful pie when cut.

Thank you! i will definitely be making again… though may experiment with softening up the creme fraiche on top.

I purchased 40 pounds of fresh peaches this year (up from my usual 20… I’m so sad when they’re gone typically, so thought I’d try for more!). I’ve had so much fun trying out a bunch of recipes (peach bbq sauce, peach nectar, peach salsa, etc.) including this one. I’d never even heard of creme fraiche, let alone made my own or bake it into a pie. I’m waiting on the results from the oven as I type, and can’t wait to give it a try! Thank you for the unique recipe!

Can I just say… thank you.
I must have made this recipe 6 times already this summer, and shared it with a dozen people. Everyone loves it!
So simple, and so tasty! I tweak sometimes, with additions of ginger or cinnamon (in the streusel), or sometimes a sprinkle of fresh chopped lemon or lime basil in with the peaches. I also have used nectarines, or mixed in plums.
YUM :)

Ok, so you were hoping for a more intelligent reader: if you forget to label the packets of pastry in your freezer, and if you forget you have more than one type of pastry in there… This works really really well with the browned butter dough from your this year’s apricot and hazelnut hamantaschen. (Some of us slightly forgot to put any sugar on our bullet-hard imported supermarket nectarines, as well, but I didn’t miss it at all).

All the peaches I can find near me are as hard as rocks, so I was considering trying this out with apricots, which seem a bit better. Does anyone have any thoughts on whether I would need to make any changes, or could I just use an equivalent volume of a smaller stone fruit? I’ll poke around the archives for other apricot options, too, to see if I can winkle out a plan of attack.

Ooh, probably! I mean… creme fraiche is not going to curdle against acidic ingredients in the oven. I believe mascarpone is of a similar richness (triple cream) but I cannot say for sure that it will be good without trying it. Report back if you try it, please? I’m sure others will appreciate it too.

This was superb tonight! Not too heavy, just the right amount of “goo” in the pie. The only change I made was adding half a teaspoon of cinnamon to the streusel. I might up that to one teaspoon next time, otherwise it is perfect as is.